Psalm 4:8 (NASB)
In peace I will both lie down and sleep, For You alone, O Lord, make me to dwell in safety.
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Bible Commentary
Psalm 4:8 is a Bible verse in the Book of Psalms written by King David, where he was speaking aloud in faith for the peace he knew was his.
In the NASB version, Psalm 4 is entitled, “Evening Prayer of Trust in God,” which is so fitting since many of our fears are associated with the dark, at nighttime.
When our daughter was young, she struggled with nighttime fear, and would come up with any excuse she could think of to keep from going to bed. My husband and I couldn’t convince her there was nothing to be afraid of.
Psalm 4:8 was the Bible verse we taught her to memorize, and we would all say it out loud together before bedtime. The Word of God—the Bible—was the power we needed. Any other word was useless.
Peace and Comfort of the Father
1 John 4:18 says fear has torment, and that is a very real thing, whether the thing we fear is real or imagined. The definition of “torment” is: torture; extreme pain or anguish of body or mind.
When I hear the word “torture” I usually think of a prisoner-of-war setting, as some movies have depicted. However, if you read the definition above—extreme pain in body or mind—it is indicative of the devil at work in our minds. We are the prisoner and the devil is our enemy who inflicts torture through fear. The torture of your mind is a very real thing.
Fear and lies do not come from God. The devil is the father of lies, and wherever we believe a lie, there is most likely some form of fear. In order to defeat the devil and his fear weapon, we must use the weapon God gave us to combat the lies. The truth, the Word of God, is our sword against the enemy (Ephesians 6:17).
Comfort in God’s Truth
David speaks the truth out loud in Psalm 4:8, “In peace I will both lie down and sleep, for You alone, O Lord, make me to dwell in safety.” David used the truth, his spiritual sword, to defeat the lies. He was reminding God of His promises and at the same time being comforted by the truth of the words he was speaking.
The Hebrew meaning of “peace” is: safe, well, happy, friendly; welfare—health, prosperity. The Hebrew meaning of “safety” is: refuge, security, trust, confidence, secure.
In the Lord, we are safe. The supernatural peace and confidence we long for is through faith in the truth, believing we are safe, believing God at His Word. Speaking it out loud, as David did, helps to firmly establish the truth in our hearts.
Just as my husband and I spoke the truth together with our daughter when she was afraid, speak the truth out loud to establish and strengthen your faith.
Study the Bible verse of Psalm 4:8, use your sword and practice believing and speaking the truth so you can be free from fear.
